Cornell Yancey bought the Cadillac he had long dreamed of late last year, a small sign that the comforts of life were falling into place.
The 44-year-old Gary man had made plans for a lawn-care business and confided to friends that he would surprise his longtime girlfriend with an engagement ring on her birthday.
But Monday afternoon, the tan Cadillac was cleaved in two in a devastating accident in Gary. Investigators said Yancey, who had a green light, pulled into the intersection of 25th Avenue and Harrison Street when he was struck by a Chrysler PT Cruiser involved in a police pursuit.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Department announced charges Tuesday against Dorian Dawson, the 19-year-old driver of that vehicle, and said state’s attorneys are reviewing possible charges against a 22-year-old passenger.
Meanwhile, Hobart police said they have reviewed the actions of the officer involved in the chase. That review found he followed proper procedures regarding police pursuits and did not violate any regulations.
The officer, Nicholas Wardrip, has been with the Hobart police for three years and is among the department’s best, said Lt. Leo Finnerty.
“If anyone feels bad about this, it’s him,” Finnerty added, as he expressed sympathy to the Yancey family from the department. “It was the wrong place at the wrong time.”
He referred questions about the accident to the Lake County Sheriff’s Department, which is handling the investigation.
According to a probable-cause affidavit and statements from investigators, Wardrip said he was near 25th Avenue and Rhode Island Street in Hobart about 2:45 p.m. checking out tips related to a crack cocaine case and saw the PT Cruiser headed south on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The car was traveling about 90 m.p.h., more than double the posted 35 m.p.h. limit.
The officer, in an unmarked Mustang, turned on his emergency lights and sounded the siren, but the driver would not pull over, according to documents.
The pursuit headed west, toward Gary, and the officer reported that the driver of the PT Cruiser became more reckless and ran through a stop sign, according to documents. Wardrip lost sight of the car by the time it crossed Interstate Highway 80/94 on the Harrison Street overpass. But as he drove up to the accident scene, he found two young men running nearby.
He captured one–Dawson–and then found Yancey lying in the grass outside Roosevelt High School, the same school from which Yancey had graduated more than two decades ago.
He was pronounced dead outside the school at 3:33 p.m.
Later, a witness told police it looked like the Cadillac “exploded into pieces.”
Dawson was charged with reckless homicide and four counts of resisting law enforcement. His passenger turned himself in to police Monday evening.
For Penny Paul, who said she had dated Yancey for nearly a decade, the accident not only claimed the man she loved, it destroyed her hopes for the future.
Late last year, Yancey had confided in Paul’s sister, telling her he would soon buy wedding rings. It was supposed to be a secret, but Paul found out.
“He was a people person,” Paul said Tuesday. “He was friendly. He loved to talk and have fun.”
Before the accident, he had been to a mechanic to get a broken gas line repaired, then visited with a friend, Paul said.
Then she echoed the sentiment already voiced by police: “Wrong place, wrong time.”
And she thought for a moment about what he should be doing instead: tending to the car he loved.
“He loved to wipe it down, keep it clean,” she said. “He loved to keep the whitewalls looking good. A day like today, he would be outside, wiping dirt off his car. He’d have his little wet rag and wipe the car down, shine it up.”
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tmaxwell@tribune.com
